IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Female Rock Star Delivers Best Ted Talk of the Year

According to Mashable, Amanda Palmer — lead singer of the Dresden Dolls — was the toast of the TED 2013 conference. In her powerful speech, entitled “The art of asking,” Palmer traces her passion to connecting with fans to her job as a “human statue” street busker in Cambridge, Massachusetts, after graduating from Wesleyan University.

She goes on to explain that, by forging “random closeness” with people through music, she has been able to reap the benefits of a fantastically devoted fan base, who let her sleep on their couch, cook her food and bring her wine. She also created a successful $1,000,000+ Kickstarter campaign for the Dresden Dolls — all through the power of asking and connecting with creativity.

It’s either a great way to make a living as an artist, or an especially convoluted method of mooching off strangers.

Kidding! The video is entirely worth watching for Palmer’s stage presence — she’s clearly at home in front of an audience.